Page 49 of Air Affair

“Please.”

Looking at her long and hard, Kelly finally nodded. “Take care, Rory. Be safe.”

Rory got into the cab and drove away for what was likely the last time. Good riddance, she thought through the pain. The opulence of the mansions along Park Avenue disgusted her for the first time. How could they all take so much for granted? How could they possibly think they deserved to live like this? How had she thought she deserved it?

As they drove by the warehouses and slums of Queens, instead of shying away, she looked at the faces of the people she saw. Even now, with nothing, she had so much more than these people, toiling in the smoke and summer heat. She had an education. She knew powerful and wealthy people. There was an invisible safety net for her that didn’t exist for any of them. She was certain she would find some way to land on her feet.

Wishing she could fix it all, she closed her eyes and realized she was in no position to fix anything until she fixed herself.

As the city turned to the countryside out the cab window, she deliberately turned her thoughts to what lay ahead, to what she was going to say to Hank. It was too much to ask to stay with him. They barely knew each other. Maybe he had a married friend that might be willing to take her in, or he could give her money for a boarding house. She’d pay him back as soon as she got a job.

Speaking of jobs, she was going to need one. A job in a shop was probably the quickest to get, though it likely didn’t pay as well as teaching. But it would take time to find a teaching position, and she needed income now. She would have to look for both, she decided.

As they passed Belmont Park, she wiped away a tear. Angry as she was at her father, she was going to miss her family and friends. What would they think when they heard? She didn’t want to think about it.

“You all right, Miss?” the cabby asked. He’d been mercifully silent so far.

“I’m just having a bad day.”

“Sorry to hear that. I hope it gets better for you.”

“Me too.” She sighed. It could hardly get worse.

She pulled out the letter from Hank inviting her to the Flatiron to remind herself of the correct address. That night felt like it was ages ago, even though only a month had passed. Back then, the world felt wide open and taking risks felt wonderful. Now, she’d taken the biggest risk of all and lost. But she was finding a strange freedom in that.

She was nobody now, which meant she could be anyone and anything she wanted. She would have to work for it, but she was no stranger to hard work, despite her pampered upbringing. If she could create the Pilots’ Benevolent Association from whole cloth in a month, surely, she had the strength, fortitude, and creativity to make a new life for herself.

The cab pulled up in front of a darling mint-green cottage with a large vegetable garden on the side. She wasn’t sure what to expect when she decided to come to see Hank, but she didn’t expect this. It was adorable with floral curtains fluttering in the windows and two pink rose bushes flanking the door. The cabby helped her bring her suitcases up to the doorstep, and she paid him, then rang the bell.

Hank opened the door, and his jaw dropped open. “Rory, what are you doing here?”

“My father found out. He wanted to force me to marry Edward today. I refused, and he cut me off. I need your help. Can I come in?”

18

Without a second thought, Hank took two of her suitcases and showed her into the house, then came back for the other two. She would probably think his place was a hovel after growing up in a Park Avenue castle, but there was no time to worry about the house. Thank God he’d cleaned the day before!

He led her into his modest parlor, and she sat down on the loveseat. “Can I get you anything? A glass of water? Some tea?”

“You don’t have to play host. I just need to talk to you.”

Sitting down beside her, he said, “Tell me what happened.”

“Edward had someone spying on me.”

“He what?” That bastard!

“I know. They think I was with Albert Jones last night. They don’t know it was you. Yet. But I can’t help worrying that they are going to find out, and I’m terrified to think what they might try to do to you.”

“Never mind about me. What happened to you?” He leaned forward and put a reassuring hand on her knee. He wasn’t scared of Edward Windham.

“I’ve been cut off. If I come to my senses in time to marry Edward, Papa says he’ll take me back. Otherwise, it’s permanent. But I’m not marrying Edward, so it might as well be permanent now.”

Poor Rory. If she was anyone else, he would do the right thing right now and propose. He’d ruined her. It was his duty. But with her, he wasn’t sure that would be the right thing. Marrying her would permanently destroy any possibility of reconciliation with her family.

“What can I do to help?” he asked.

“I need a place to stay. By any chance, do you have a married friend with a spare room who might be willing to take me in until I have a job and can afford a boarding house? Or would you be willing to lend me money for a boarding house until I get a job? I’ll pay you back.”